for the past year or so i've been working hard on myself and my work. i have decided i want to be happy and i know i'm the only one to make that happen. i focus on the people and things that are important to me, and say fuck it to everything else. life is too short to waste time on anything that doesn't make you happy. i have a ways to go still, but i finally feel like i'm getting my life and priorities in order.

my old job caused me so much stress, grief, and heartache. but i know i let myself be consumed by a vicious cycle and atmosphere. i made a decision in february to quit that toxic environment one way or the other by september. i made plans and started saving money in order to move to portland by mid-september. well, as luck would have it, a totally unexpected job opportunity presented itself and i took it without hesitation. as of now i don't know what the future holds for me, and that's ok. plans never work out the way you want them to, so i'm kind of done with them for now. not that i'm giving up on my dreams of moving to the pnw, they might just be on hold for a little while longer. i'm excited about all of the new things i have to learn where i am now. anything i learn in the creative industry is a chance to not only further my career, but better my personal work. and who knows? maybe i'll love this new job enough to stay in texas a little while longer. let's just play it by ear for now.

i'm also excited to be in this new position because i don't think i'll be working near as much overtime as my old job. i would go through these endless cycles of unfathomable overtime which left me drained and only wanting to sleep at the end of it all. that has also been something i've worked hard to diminish over the past year. the money is never worth it, not when you have no time to sleep, or work on personal things. this has allowed me to photograph more and more. i have been able to grow my business day by day and make goals for myself that i never thought would be part of my life.

i don't know what the future holds for me and that's ok. actually, it's more than ok. i welcome the unknown. i know i work hard and i won't let anything get in the way of my dreams. for those of you who have followed along with me during this journey, thank you! thank you for your support and kind words. you have no idea what it means to me.